A few weeks later....

I flopped down on the edge of a pond in Starfall, hissing as my injuries were irritated. I hadn't destroyed an AU in almost a month, and Inky was starting to gain ground on me. So far, it hadn't gotten really bad, universes were still safe from crashing into each other, but I didn't know how long it would last. I had no idea how many universes were in the Doodlesphere, nor how close they were to each other, but surely I could take a break for awhile, right? The voices hadn't said anything, so I'm taking that as a sign that I don't have to do my accursed job.

I sighed, staring blankly at the water as it fell gracefully to the pond from the outcropping of rock high above me. It sparkled like the starry sky, the droplets of water glinting with moonlight. I loved this place. It was safe from the chaos, the anarchy outside this simple AU. 

But it was a lonely existence.

'Blueberry's out there, somewhere,' I thought sadly, remembering the adamant look in his eyelights when he refused to leave the Anti-Void. Why did I have to drive him away?! Why couldn't I have just accepted his help, and gone to a healer with him like he wanted?! I felt tears pool at the edges of my eyesockets the more I thought about it, and I tried to wipe them away. He's probably better off, anyway. I would only cause him harm.

I heard something shuffle next to me, and I snapped my head to the sound. My eyesockets widened as the Monster Kid of this universe jumped up, startled.

"O-oops! Uh, I didn't mean ta scare ya, mister!" they said quickly, bowing a little in embarrassment. "I was only comin' over ta s-see what ya were lookin' at with that sad look on your face."

I blinked and turned away. Monster Kid walked over and plopped down next to me, swinging their feet over the edge of the pond. I tried to ignore them, pulling my knees up to my chest. I was on break, and this kid was disrupting it!

"Soooo," Monster Kid began, dipping their feet in the cool water, "whatcha doin' all alone out here? I'm looking for Undyne! She's the coolest, and she's out patrolling for bad guys! I wanna watch her beat one up!"

I glanced at them briefly, but said nothing. If they're looking for a fight, I didn't want any part in it. I hadn't been feeling motivated to do anything in a long time now, not since Blueberry left. I had been aimlessly wandering the multiverse, trying to figure out how I would explain things to Inky. I didn't want to destroy anymore, I knew that! But nobody else knew, except Blueberry. For all I know, he's already trying to convince them. I could help him by just refusing to destroy, or pretending to get Inky's attention! That might work! I looked back at Monster Kid, who had asked me something.

"What was that? I wasn't listening."

"Yo, I was wondering if you knew any constellations? I dunno that many, and I wanna impress Undyne when I meet her!"

I raised a brow. "Why are you so obsessed with Undyne, anyway? Don't your parents ever get worried about you wandering around by yourself?"

Monster Kid looked down into the bright blue pond sadly. "I don't got parents, mister...." In a flash, they were back to smiling. "But if Undyne thinks I'm cool, maybe she'll let me hang out with her! I could be a royal guard, someday! Uh, you ok, mister?"

I stared at them. This child didn't have parents? They're an orphan.... "I-I didn't realize, I'm sorry about y-your-"

"Yo, it's alright! I've been on my own for a long time, so I know how to take care of myself! Besides, who needs parents? They just tell ya what ta do all the time, give ya bedtimes, all that lame stuff. I'm gonna become a royal guard all by myself, just like Undyne did!"

I looked away from them, shaken. Poor kid. They reminded me of what I was like before I met Blueberry, before I knew how badly I wanted a friend. They don't seem to realize how isolating it can be to try doing things yourself. An ache weighed down on my soul, making it difficult to breath as I recalled how nice it was to come back to the Anti-Void with Blueberry waiting for me. He would ask me what I did with my day, and I would always answer the same thing. He tried to be my friend, and I missed that, so damn much.

"Being alone for a long time isn't healthy, kid," I mumbled, my voice cracking a little with emotion. "You shouldn't have to be alone for this long, especially this young. I would know. I've been alone for...."

"A long time, huh?"

I nodded because I couldn't trust my voice. They looked up at me sadly, then sighed. "I guess you're right, mister. That's why I'm trying impress Undyne! She'll take me in and train me to be a royal guard, and I'll beat up bad guys with her! Just you wait and see!"

I grinned at them as their eyes glowed with enthusiasm, then patted their head. "I'm sure you will, kid." I stood up to go, but they stopped me.

"Yo, ya didn't answer my question from before!" When I tilted my head in confusion, they laughed. "Y'know, about the constellations?"

I looked up at the stars, squinting to distinguish some blobs of light from the rest. I looked to the biggest blob, the moon, and used it as a guide to find a constellation, any of the ones I knew by heart. When that didn't work, I tried to connect the stars in shapes that I recognized, and finally found one. I knelt down and pointed up for Monster Kid to see.

"See the big, red dot in the sky? That's Orion's shoulder. If you look south of it, you'll see three more very bright stars. That's his belt. Then there are two more south of those that make up his legs. See 'em?"

Monster Kid jumped up and down with excitement. "I see 'em, I see 'em! Thanks so much, mister!"

I nodded to him, and stood up. "Anytime, kid."

... ... ...

'Worthless glitch!'

I couldn't ignore the screams any longer. They had gotten louder and more insistent after I stopped wandering, and I started to wonder if by staying out of the Anti-Void was diminishing their influence on me. If that's the case, then maybe I should stay away from it. But it was my only refuge besides Outertale, and that might not even last long.

"Can't you just leave me alone?" I muttered tonelessly, knowing that it was useless but still hoping I'd get a lucky break.

'You just don't know when to shut up and obey us!'

'It's all Blueberry's fault! If he hadn't interfered, this whiny little pissbaby would be doing his job!'

'Fucking go destroy something like the slave you are so we don't have to punish you!'

I flinched at their words, sighing and getting up. I could sense where they wanted me to go, and opened a portal to the universe getting too close to the others. I landed in Hotland, or what I thought was Hotland. Rivers of lava ran through the black rock beneath me, mixing with the hot springs that spewed steaming hot water into the air. It evaporated in seconds, throwing mists of steam onto the bejeweled walls and ceiling of the underground and creating prisms of rainbow all over the precious stones.

I marveled at the scene, slowly looking around and taking in the beauty. I began walking along the precarious platform overlooking several lava streams, realizing I would have to destroy this beautiful place. Sighing softly, I began ripping down stalactites off the ceiling, raining down the crumbling roof onto the platforms. I made it to the Lab, tearing the door off its hinges and startling the person inside: Asgore.

"Ah!" he cried, backing away fearfully. "Wh-who are you? What do you want?!"

'This must be a shifted AU,' I thought, trapping him in my strings. I ripped him in half, looking away in shame and sorrow as he dusted. A light caught my eye, and I bent over his jacket to find what looked like a circular, metal device. It was blinking red, and my eyesockets widened when I heard a portal open up. Out stepped this Storyshift's Chara, with Inky and Glowstick following behind them. Glowstick notched an arrow, while Inky pulled out his paintbrush.

"There you are," Inky growled, pointing his paintbrush at me. "I was beginning to think you had stopped for good. But I was wrong."

"Wait!" I tried to tell them, dodging their attacks as they cornered me in the Lab. "W-wait, Ink, please-!"

The creator slammed his paintbrush into my chest, knocking the air out of me and preventing me from speaking for a moment. Before I could recover, another hit from my head sent me flying back, making my nonexistent ears ring painfully. I tried to get up, but my balance had been severely damaged by the brutal hit. Everything spun in circles as I floundered away from my opponents. It didn't help that the voices were screaming at me to destroy, but that was unimportant, right now. I grunted as Glowstick's arrow pierced my shoulder, pinning me to the wall behind me. Once again, I tried to stop them.

"W-wait, please! I need to tell you- AAAGH!!!" 

'FUCKING MORON!!!'

'STOP TALKING!!! STOP TALKING RIGHT NOW AND DO YOUR JOB!!!'

'DO IT NOW OR WE'LL BREAK YOUR FUCKING EARDRUMS!!!'

'YOU WON'T HEAR ANYTHING EXCEPT US FOR MONTHS!!!'

Inky hesitated as the destroyer glitched violently, appearing to be in immense pain. He and Dream exchanged looks, beginning to back away.

"Ink?" Dream whispered. "Something feels wrong. Maybe we should stop...."

Inky was about to answer, but his attention switched back to Error as the glitchy skeleton ripped the arrow out of his shoulder. Both guardian and creator took aggressive stances as the destroyer towered over them, mumbling broken and disjointed pleas.

"LiStEn- I- pLeAsE, i DoN't WaNt- aCK! UgH, i WaNt To TeLl ThEm! ShUt Up!!!"

Inky lowered his weapon slightly, a concerned look on his face. Error looked scared and frustrated, like something was trying to stop him from doing or saying something. Could he be under some sort of mind control? The possibility had been thrown out as unlikely before, but not completely ruled out. It made him sad to think that someone could be forcing Error into committing such terrible crimes, but he was more concerned about who could've done this. Who was so evil and twisted that they turned an innocent skeleton into their puppet, then went out of their way to make everybody else miserable? Before he could try and reason with Error, a tendril of darkness shot past him and wrapped itself around the glitchy skeleton's throat.

"Glad I got here when I did," Nightmare stepped into the flickering light, snarling at the destroyer. His blue eyelight glowed the color of moonlight as he threw the glitch into the huge computer monitor, sparks flying from the impact. "Are you alright, Ink?"

Ink felt his cheeks heat up, and nodded. He looked over at the crumpled heap of smoking clothing that was the destroyer, approaching it carefully. He jumped back when Error stood up abruptly, still glitching erratically. His eyesockets widened when he noticed the blood pouring down the sides of the glitch's head. Nightmare was about to stab him, but he stopped the negative guardian.

"Wait! Nightmare, this is going too far. He's already beaten, please just stop!"

Nightmare eyed him for a moment, then advanced on Error. "As long as this glitch lives, he's a threat to the rest of the multiverse. You should know that better than anyone, Ink."

I looked up to find Tentacles raising his tendrils to strike. Inky's head was lowered, and he refused to look at me. I saw Tentacles' mouth move, but I couldn't hear anything. Oh god, I can't hear! The voices were serious when they said they'd break my eardrums! I tried to say something, anything, begging him to just listen to me, but my cries were interrupted by screams as the tendrils buried themselves in my limbs and chest. I shot a bone at Tentacles, successfully driving him off. I opened a portal underneath me and fell through, but Tentacles jumped in with me. I rolled out of the way as he tried to impale me again, weaving a web of strings around him. He turned into shadow and avoided my strings, but I was able to catch him with a blaster. He didn't get up right away, so I used my strings to throw him into a portal. 

'See? We told you we'd punish you~'

'Now go do your job before we do something worse!'

I numbly wandered into a portal to another copy, beginning to destroy that, too. I couldn't hear anything, which I couldn't tell if it was a blessing or a curse as I destroyed AU after AU. I had opened another portal as the latest AU crumbled, following the voices' guidance. It was only when I looked up at the starlit sky that my eyesockets filled with tears.

Outertale.

'N-no,' I thought despairingly. 'This one is supposed to be safe! I can't destroy my only other refuge! I won't do it!'

'Fucking destroy this piece of shit, already!'

NO!!!

'Don't talk back, worthless glitch!'

'You don't get to choose which ones to destroy, you wretched idiot!'

I won't do it!

'Do it now, or we will make you permanently deaf!'

'Hurry up before we find something else to punish you with, you insolent little roach!'

I stood still for a few minutes, unwilling to destroy something this dear to me. My head snapped down when I felt something tug at my hoodie sleeve, eyesockets widening in horror when I met the excited eyes of the Monster Kid I had met, before. I backed away as they spoke to me, unable to hear them. Their expression turned concerned and a little fearful as I brought my hands up slowly to my strings. I brought them down, watching sadly as Monster Kid backed away. I wrapped my strings around the islands around us, pulling them apart and scattering the rocky remains. Monster Kid suddenly stopped, shakily standing their ground. I couldn't hear what they said, but I knew it that they were trying to stand up to me. 

I didn't want to kill them.

I didn't want to kill any of them.

My strings snaked around Monster Kid's torso, holding them up in the air as they struggled to free themselves. I tore my gaze from theirs as my strings squeezed them into a dusty pile of clothes and blood. I had been able to read their lips before they dusted, and I felt my soul break.

"Please don't do this."

I destroyed Outertale, and returned to the Anti-Void. I fell to the floor, my anguished sobs echoing around me. Why? Why? Why didn't I try harder to tell Inky that it didn't have to be this way?! He was right there, we could've talked this out! Why didn't anything go my way???!!

... ... ...

"Dammit," Fate muttered to himself. What was happening? Why was Error rejecting his every attempt to free him? This didn't make any sense! Destiny watched him resentfully, the strings he'd given Error getting weaker trying to hold the glitchy skeleton's soul together. 

"Well, brother?" Destiny's normally peppy voice grumbled like an earthquake. "What's your next idea? I would love to see what next you can do to hurt Error more."

Fate turned to his brother sharply. "I'm not trying to hurt him, you know that! Something is interfering with my efforts to find a compromise between him and Inky, but I don't know how to fix it!"

"Well, you better fix it soon," Destiny turned away, his voice lowering to sound almost sad. "Error doesn't have much hope, left."

... ... ...

I laid on the floor of the Anti-Void, sniffling. I had no idea how long I stayed there, but my hearing had come back not too long ago. In spite of this, I had refused to leave, knowing if I stayed here long enough, someone was bound to come looking for me. Like Tentacles or Inky, maybe Glowstick. I didn't want to keep running. Even if it meant I stayed in here forever, then I would just lie here, waiting.

The voices had come back, but I refused to listen to them. I hate this. I hate living in a multiverse that needed me. I wanted to die, I wanted to stop being who I was, I want it all to stop! All I'm doing is hurting people, so it would be better if I just... disappeared. They'd all do better without me, even if the multiverse collapsed, right? Inky could blame me, but that's fine I guess. It's not like I wasn't to blame for the countless AUs I destroyed, trying to prevent the universes from destroying themselves. He just wouldn't know why, but if he came here looking for me, wondering why I wasn't destroying again, I could tell him. I could try and explain everything, even if he didn't believe me, at least he would know. I just... don't feel like fighting him, right now.

I flinched when a portal opened up. I sat up, hope blooming in my chest, but it was extinguished as soon as it appeared. Tentacles and his crew surrounded me, their weapons drawn. Tentacles strode up to me, a frown on his face.

"So you're back here," he said bitterly. "I've spent the last month looking high and low for your ugly mug, and you were back in this- this dead space. I don't know why I'm surprised, though. This damn white hell is your hideout, after all." He took me by the collar of my shirt, pulling me up to face him. "Stop destroying, you bastard. Or I'll strap you to a rocket and shoot you off into space! Oh wait, that's right. You fucking destroyed the version of Outertale I was gonna do that in!"

He threw me across the ground, fuming. I curled in on myself, waiting for the inevitable onslaught of attacks to start. For a moment, it was silent and still, and I cautiously opened one eye. Tentacles just stood there, his eyesocket wide with what seemed like... shock? Astonishment maybe?

"Quit pretending to be the victim here!" he raged, picking me up and slamming me down on the ground with a tendril. "Stop trying to gain pity from everyone! You're the reason we can't just live in peace!"

Nightmare shook with anger, completely livid with the destroyer's behavior. How dare this lowlife, this maniac, make anyone feel sorry for him! He was the one everyone should fear, the one who hurt people for no reason! And here he was, actually garnering enough pity from Nightmare's own gang to stop them from carrying out their revenge. They all had known Outertale was special to Nightmare, and the glitch decimating it was an unforgiveable act of terrorism. But seeing the destroyer after a month, lying on the cold, hard ground of the Anti-Void, refusing to fight back or even defend himself, none of them could find it in themselves to raise a hand against him. He just seemed too pathetic, a waste of time and effort, even if they didn't hate his nonexistent guts. 

Roman, the Alphys from Numeraltale, felt her stomach twist. She looked around at the other Judges, then down at her fidgeting hands. She didn't feel like she was on the right side anymore. She had been a victim of gang violence from her school, being teased and bullied for being a nerd. And this looked a lot like a gang cornering some unfortunate soul for no other reason except they had nothing better to do. And she was one of them; a bully, a gang member bent on making another life miserable. She had become the very thing she hated.

"N-Nightmare," she stepped up to him, taking a position in front of Error. "Th-this needs t-to stop. C-can't you s-s-see he's not f-fighting back? I-in my AU, th-that's a sign o-of s-s-surrender."

Nightmare snarled at her. "Get out of my way, Roman. This criminal needs to suffer for what he's done!"

Roman met the eyes of the other Judges, giving them scolding glances. "I-is this wh-what you want? T-to hurt s-s-someone who's sparing u-us? Wh-who's not fighting b-back?!" None of them answered. Roman stomped her clawed foot on the ground, sending sparks lightning up around her. "Y-you're all j-j-just a b-b-bunch of b-b-bullies! Y-you c-c-can't l-l-look p-past your own h-hatred! W-well, y-you're not involving me i-in your p-pathetic p-persecution o-o-of somebody wh-who's already surrendered!"

They all watched as she opened an electrically charged portal. She turned back to them, letting her eyes fall on Nightmare. "A-anyone wh-who'd like t-t-to join me is welcome to." She grinned slightly when some of her fellow Judges entered the portal with her, knowing they had realized their mistake. Before going in herself, she glared at the ones who had stayed. Then, she tilted her head up at Nightmare. "S-sorry, Nightmare. I j-just can't sit by a-and watch you t-terrorize the destroyer, m-much less p-participate, no matter wh-what he's done. H-he hasn't d-done anything to me, o-or my AU, s-so until y-you can prove h-he's worthy of m-my disdain, y-you will get n-no help from me, or m-my AU. I-I'm sorry, again."

And she left. Nightmare looked around at his remaining crew, feeling their guilt fester like an open wound. He sensed the destroyer's emotions as well, wanting to hit himself when guilt stung his soul too. They were all negative, fear, sorrow, guilt. With an inward sigh, Nightmare went over to Error, making the destroyer jump and curl in on himself. He stood over him, scanning him with an unreadable expression.

"Do you want to keep destroying?"

I felt my soulbeat speed up in fear and hope. I quickly shook my head, hesitantly looking him in the eye.

"Are you gonna keep destroying?"

I sat up, and scooted backwards, knowing my answer will anger him. 

"I can't stop-"

My breath was cut off as a tendril latched onto my neck, crushing it and lifting me into the air. Tentacles growled, then laughed menacingly. 

"I knew it. You play the victim really well, I'll grant you. You managed to drive off half the Judges who had wanted to kill you with fucking puppy eyes!" He threw me back into the circle of my enemies, and they closed in on me again, this time with no pity in their eyes. "But begging won't save you this time, you heartless brute."

I tried to crawl away, but the stupid tendrils pulled me back.

Then, the torture began.

I managed to escape to another version of Outertale, then destroyed out of anger and self loathing. I had tried to explain myself, tried to make them understand, but they didn't want to listen. It was all the more reason to show them what horrible monster I was. Maybe then I'll piss off someone that was strong enough to end me.

_______________________________________

Sooooo, uhhhhh-

MissUnpopularOpinion

This is kinda sorta....

Well, I'd be lying if this chapter wasn't your fault /pos

Sooooo, here we are, with an unplanned chapter that might or might not actually make sense later but might actually make sense cuz I planned on just skimming over this part vaguely? I dunno, we'll see where it goes

So yeah, I liked your idea enough that I turned it into a whole-ass chapter lmao